Disease/Infection News

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Researchers target weakness in pathogens causing tropical diseases

Researchers are zeroing in on the Achilles’ heel of pathogens that cause Chagas disease, sleeping sickness and leishmaniasis.

8 May 2025

New molecule offers hope for chlamydia treatment

Researchers at Umeå University, Sweden, and Michigan State University, USA, have discovered a type of molecule that can kill chlamydia bacteria but spare bacteria that are important for health.

8 May 2025

Monoclonal antibody protects mice from lethal influenza A doses

Scientists have engineered a monoclonal antibody that can protect mice from a lethal dose of influenza A, a new study shows.

8 May 2025

Anti-parasitic drug could accelerate the elimination of infection endemic to Africa

Tens of millions of people in Africa are infected by parasitic worms that cause lymphatic filariasis (also called elephantiasis), a disease that leads to severe swelling and deformities of the limbs and genitals.

7 May 2025

Researchers secure funding to advance Chagas disease research

A team of researchers at Texas A&M University and the University of Georgia (UGA) has received more than $4 million from federal and non-governmental organizations to support research on Chagas disease prevalence, diagnostics and treatment to benefit both dogs and humans.

7 May 2025

Most deadly drug-resistant infections in poorer countries go untreated, study shows

A new modelling study reveals that only 7% of carbapenem-resistant Gram-negative (CRGN) bacterial infections in eight LMICs receive effective antibiotic treatment. This stark undertreatment poses a major threat in the global fight against antimicrobial resistance (AMR).

7 May 2025

New AI approach speeds up antiviral discovery for human enterovirus 71

Artificial intelligence algorithms have now been combined with traditional laboratory methods to uncover promising drug leads against human enterovirus 71 (EV71), the pathogen behind most cases of hand, foot and mouth disease.

6 May 2025

A comprehensive review of vaccine approaches for severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome

Announcing a new article publication for Zoonoses journal. Severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome (SFTS), caused by the tick-borne severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome virus (SFTSV), is a disease that is endemic to East Asia and has mortality rates reaching 30%.

6 May 2025

Why a major hydroxychloroquine study was retracted over statistical misuse

Researchers reanalyzed a retracted HCQ study that claimed over 16,000 COVID-19 deaths and exposed serious methodological flaws, including inappropriate use of effect sizes and lack of dose-specific analysis. The study calls for urgent reform in peer review and greater transparency in scientific publishing.

6 May 2025

HIV testing and outreach falter as Trump funding cuts sweep the South

Storm clouds hung low above a community center in Jackson, where pastor Andre Devine invited people inside for lunch. Hoagies with smoked turkey and ham drew the crowd, but several people lingered for free preventive health care: tests for HIV and other diseases, flu shots, and blood pressure and glucose monitoring.

6 May 2025

Breakthrough in labeling TB glycans could lead to faster diagnosis

Tuberculosis, the world's deadliest infectious disease, is estimated to infect around 10 million people each year, and kills more than 1 million annually. Once established in the lungs, the bacteria's thick cell wall helps it to fight off the host immune system.

5 May 2025

New rifamycin drugs fight antibiotic-resistant lung infections more effectively

Researchers have developed next-generation rifamycin analogs that effectively kill both replicating and nonreplicating Mycobacterium abscessus while minimizing drug-drug interactions. Lead candidates UMN-120 and UMN-121 showed superior efficacy to current treatments in mouse models and retained potency against M. tuberculosis.

5 May 2025

Scientists use AI to build mutation-proof antibodies for SARS-CoV-2

Researchers used AI models to design antibodies that neutralize over 1,300 SARS-CoV-2 strains, including Delta and Omicron. The models demonstrated faster, cheaper, and more adaptable therapeutic development compared to traditional methods.

5 May 2025

CEPI and University of Bergen collaborate on global vaccine mapping project

Supported by CEPI funding of up to $ 1.5 million over three years, researchers at Norway's University of Bergen will maintain an up-to-date overview of every vaccine candidate being developed around the globe for CEPI's priority pathogens as well as other emerging viral threats identified by CEPI.

5 May 2025

Trump team’s $500 million bet on old vaccine technology puzzles scientists

The Trump administration's unprecedented $500 million grant for a broadly protective flu shot has confounded vaccine and pandemic preparedness experts, who said the project was in early stages, relied on old technology, and was just one of more than 200 such efforts.

5 May 2025

Rising antibiotic resistance threatens UTI treatment in Malawi

A growing resistance to antibiotics is complicating the treatment of urinary tract infections (UTIs) in Malawi, with new research revealing that nearly half of women presenting with symptoms at a major referral hospital had infections resistant to multiple drugs.

3 May 2025

New albumin-based vaccine shows promise for mucosal immunity

Vaccines save millions of lives every year, but there is still an urgent need for more efficient vaccines. Strategies to combat serious outbreaks of viral infections are particularly important.

2 May 2025

COVID-19 leaves longer-lasting symptoms than flu or pneumonia, study finds

A large U.S. cohort study found that post-acute symptoms after COVID-19 vary by initial disease severity, age, sex, and comorbidities. Compared to influenza and pneumonia, long COVID presented with distinct symptom patterns and longer-lasting effects.

1 May 2025

COVID-19 restrictions linked to better birth timing but worse mental health

A global review reveals that while lockdowns helped reduce early births in some regions, they also worsened maternal mental health, highlighting the need for more tailored support during future health crises.

1 May 2025

HHS and NIH announce the development of next-generation, universal vaccine platform

Colorized transmission electron micrograph of influenza A/H1N1 virus particles. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the National Institutes for Health (NIH) today announced the development of the next-generation, universal vaccine platform, Generation Gold Standard, using a beta-propiolactone (BPL)-inactivated, whole-virus platform.

1 May 2025